1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to computer failure recovery systems, and more particularly, to a failure recovery system that automatically resets and boots the computer upon a system failure, alerts the administrator of the error and can load diagnostic software.
2. Description of the Related Art
Even with today's advanced computer systems, errors occur which cause an entire computer system to fail. Critical errors can occur due to failure of a component in the system that occupies a critical position in the computer architecture, or the error may be caused by a memory failure that must be remedied to continue. Whatever the cause, a critical error causing a system failure cripples the entire computer system, often rendering millions of dollars of equipment idle and leaving its users frustrated.
To recover, personal computers require manual assistance from an operator to reset the system and execute power up and boot procedures. If the computer administrator is not available at the time the system fails, it may be hours or even days before the computer administrator arrives and the system returns to operations, especially for a small company without an administrator on staff. Furthermore, even if the system may be rebooted without any particular expertise, the source of the error must be diagnosed and repaired before the system is again acceptably reliable. Consequently a person knowledgeable of the system must be on hand at all times to keep the system running, or the computer system must remain idle until the computer administrator arrives and performs his duties.
In some cases, the system failure may not even be noticed until long after it occurs. In many applications, computer systems operate in remote locations without regular attendance. If the system fails, no means are available to notify the owner of the system failure, and there is no way of bringing the system back to operational status. Even if the system reboots, the cause of the error cannot be diagnosed and remedied until the administrator is notified and gains access to the system to remedy the problem.